Marking device for paint cans and the like



Dec. 27, 1955 w. c. LEHECKA 2,728,372

MARKING DEVICE FOR PAINT CANS AND THE LIKE Filed Nov. 28, 1952 INVENTOR. W/LL/AM C. LEHECKA AWOPJVEXS,

nited States Patent-'0 MARKING DEVICE FOR PAINT CANS AND THE LIKE William C. Lehecka, Cleveland, Ohio Application November 28, 1952, Serial No. 323,088

4 Claims. (Cl. 153-9) The present invention relates generally as indicated to a device for marking paint cans and the like, and more particularly to a device which is designed to peripherally deform, score, or otherwise mark the body wall of a paint can at a predetermined distance from the bottom and preferably in a plane parallel to and at a desired distance from the bottom wall thereof.

It is one general object of this invention to provide a mar 'ng device of the character indicated which is capable of handling any of a variety of different sizes of paint cans, for example, from 4 pint size to gallon size.

It is another object of this invention to provide a can marking device which accurately marks the cans so that the latter can be filled to a predetermined level with one of the ingredients of the paint to be formulated and mixed therein.

It is another object of this invention to provide a can marking device which includes a novel mechanism for locking the marking elements in operating position.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be come apparent as the description proceeds.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, said invention then comprises the features hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims, the following description and the annexed drawings setting forth in detail one illustrative embodiment of the invention, this being indicative, however, of but one of the various ways in which the principle of the invention may be employed.

In said annexed drawings:

Fig. l is a side elevation view partly in cross-section of one form of my paint can marking device;

Fig. 2 is an end elevation view as viewed along the line 2-2, Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a front elevation view somewhat schematic in character of a paint compounding bar of which the can marking device is adapted to constitute one of the components.

As best shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the marking device constituting the present invention comprises a base 1 in which is journaled a shaft 2 having a peripherally grooved and preferably serrated roller 3 keyed or otherwise fixedly secured at one end thereon. The other end of said shaft 2 is formed with a driving portion 4 to which the operating lever 5 is adapted to be secured. Of course, if desired, the shaft 2 may be power driven. Said shaft 2 is secured in axially fixed position with respect .to said base 1 as by means of the collar 6 and the split retaining ring 7.

Pivotally secured to said base as at 8 is a tubular member 9 which rotatably mounts the shaft portion 10 of another roller 11, said roller 11 being formed with a peripheral rib complementary with the groove 12 formed in the roller 3. In operating position, the axes of the rollers 3 and 11 are substantially parallel and the peripheral rib of roller 11 is disposed partway in the groove 12 of roller 3.

The actuation of member 9 to position the roller 11 in the operating position aforesaid is effected as by means of the self-locking eccentric ring 14 which is rotatably mounted on said member 9 and it peripherally engages the circular ring 15, the latter being rotatably mounted on the base 1. Said eccentric ring 14 is provided with a radial wrench opening 16 by which said ring 14 may be rotated in opposite directions to cause the roller 11 to be moved laterally toward roller 3 and to permit lifting of the roller 11 laterally away from said roller 3.

Said shaft 2 is formed with a central bore 17 in which the stern portion 18 of an adjusting and supporting disc 19 is slidable. Said disc 19 and stem portion 18 constitute a gauge to determine the distance between the bottom wall of a can and the plane of the peripheral rib and groove of rollers 11 and 3, said gauge being locked in any desired adjusted position, as for example by means of set screw 20 which is threaded into shaft 2 and has its end portion adapted for frictional engagement with said stem portion 18. Said disc 19 is preferably of the same diameter as the roller 3 and is preferably co-axial with said roller whereby when a can C is positioned as shown in Fig. 1 the spaced apart disc 19 and roller 3 will serve to support the can C with its axis parallel to the axes of the rollers 3 and 11.

After the gauge 19 has been properly adjusted for a predetermined size paint can, the latter is positioned between the rollers 11 and 3 with its bottom wall contacting the gauge. With the can thus positioned, the eccentric ring is turned so as to cause the roller 11 to move laterally toward the roller 3 whereby the body wall of the can is deformed between the peripheral rib of roller 11 and the peripheral groove 12 of roller 3. Now when the shaft 2 is rotated, the can will similarly be rotated by reason of the frictional engagement between the roller 3 and the inside body wall of the can and after one revolution of said can, there will have been formed around the periphery thereof a groove which is parallel to the bottom wall of the can and is spaced a predetermined distance from such bottom wall. It is to be understood that the rollers 3 and 11 may be reversed in position so as to form in the body wall of the can a peripheral rib instead of a peripheral groove as aforesaid.

As shown in Fig. 3, the above-described can marking device is mounted on a cabinet structure 21, said cabinet structure 21 constituting a paint compounding and mixing bar. Disposed in said bar are two drums 22 and 23, the drum 22 containing pigment in paste form, for example, white lead, and the drum 23 containing the vehicle, for example, linseed oil, thinner, and drier. Connected to each of said drums 22 and 23 is a nitrogen, carbon dioxide, or other gas bottle 24 for discharging the contents of the respective drums when the dispensing valves 25 are opened. The nitrogen, carbon dioxide, or other gas under pressure in said drums serves as an anti-skinning agent.

The bar is provided with a humidified storage cabinet 26 containing, as in flexible plastic bags or tubes, colors in paste form for coloring the paint which is formulated and mixed. The bar is also squeezing rollers 27 and also with a mixing device 28 for stirring the contents of the filled paint cans or for shaking the filled paint cans after the same have been covered or closed.

In using the paint compounding and mixing bar, the empty paint cans are first marked and the marked cans are first placed under one valve 25 to fill the cans up to the level of the marks thereon with the pigment from drum 22. The cans are then moved to a position under the packet squeezing rolls 27, and the contents of one or more packets of desired filled cans. The cans are then positioned under the other dispensing valve 25 and filled to the top with the vehicle from the drum 23. Thereafter, the filled cans are stirred provided with color packet color are squeezed into the partly.

while open, orelse the cans may be closed and subjected to vibration or shaking by the mixing device 28. In this way, the customer is provided with exactly the proper and desired color of paint which has been freshly mixed and compounded.

Accordingly, the paint dealer need only carry in stock several different sizes of empty paint cans which are filled on customers orders and according to their specifications. In other words, it is not necessary for the paint dealer to stock many different colors of paint in many different sizes of cans and to have on hand large numbers of cans of each size and of each color.

It is to be understood that the can markings may consist of scored lines or lines formed by ink, crayon, or paint rollers which rollers if operating on the inside of the can employ ink, crayon, or paint which is insoluble in the paint to be compounded so as not to contaminate the latter.

Other modes of applying the principle of the invention may be employed, change being made as regards the details described, provided the features stated in any of the following claims or the equivalent of such be employed.

I therefore particularly point as my invention:

1. In a device for peripherally deforming the body wall of a paint can and the like in a plane parallel to and at any desired distance from the bottom wall thereof, the combination of a pair of substantially parallel rollers between which the can body wall is adapted to be positioned, one roller being formed with a peripheral groove and the other with a complementary peripheral rib, a support structure including a pair of members pivotally connected together respectively journalling said rollers for out and distinctly claim rotation about their respective axes and supporting said rollers for relative lateral movement from a position permitting positioning of the can body wall therebetween to a position frictionally engaging and deforming the can body wall between such rib and groove, peripherally engaged eccentric and annular rings rotatable on the respective members for relatively moving said rollers laterally to such last position and for locking the same thereat upon rotation of said eccentric ring, a gauge adjustable in a direction axially of said rollers and disposed to engage the can bottom and body walls and thereby, in cooperation with said rollers, support the can with its axis parallel to said rollers and with its bottom wall predeterminedly spaced from such rib and groove, and drive means for rotating one roller and thereby rotating the can between said rollers for peripherally deforming the body wall thereof.

2. In a device for peripherally deforming the body wall of a paint can and the like in a plane parallel to and at any desired distance from the bottom wall thereof, the combination of a base, a shaft journalled in said base, a roller on one end of said shaft, drive means at the other end of. said shaft for rotating said shaft and said roller thereon, a member pivotally connected between its ends to said base, a roller rotatably carried at one end of said member, one of said rollers being formed with a peripheral groove and the other of said rollers being formed with a complementary peripheral rib, said rollers being adapted to be moved laterally relative to one another by pivotal movement of said member on said base to frictionally engage and to deform the can body wall adapted to be positioned therebetween, the axes of said rollers and shaft being substantially parallel when thus moved laterally, an eccentric rotatably mounted on the other end of said member and adapted to effect such pivotal movement of said member to thus relatively move said rollers and to lock said rollers in such can body wall engaging and deforming position, and a gauge having a stem portion coaxial with said shaft and axially adjustably extending into said shaft and a disk portion of the same diameter as said roller on the end of said shaft adapted to be engaged by the inside bottom and body walls of the can whereby the can is supported with its axis parallel to the axes of said rollers and shaft, said shaft when rotated effecting, through the frictional engagement of the roller thereon with the can body wall, a rotation of the can to peripherally deform the latter in a plane parallel to and at a desired distance from the can bottom wall as determined by the adjustment of said gauge.

3. In a device for peripherally deforming the body wall of a paint can and the like in a plane parallel to the bottom wall thereof, the combination of a base, a shaft journalled in said base, a roller on one end of said shaft, drive means at the other end of said shaft for rotating the latter and the roller thereon, a member pivotally connected between its ends to said base, a roller rotatably carried at one end of said member, one of said rollers being deformedwith a peripheral groove and the other of said rollers being formed with a complementary peripheral ri'o, said rollers being adapted to be moved laterally relative to one another by pivotal movement of said member on said base to frictionally engage and to deform the can body wall adapted to be positioned therebetween, the axes of said rollers and shaft being substantially parallel when thus moved laterally, an eccentric rotatably mounted on the other end of said member and adapted when rotated to engage said base to effect such pivotal movement of said member to thus relatively move said rollers and to lock said rollers in such can body wall engaging and deforming position, said shaft when rotated effecting, through the frictional engagement of the roller thereon with the can body wall,'a rotation of the can to peripherally deform the latter in a plane parallel to the can bottom wall.

4. In a device for peripherally deforming the body Wall of a paint can and the like in a plane parallel to the bottom wall thereof, the combination of a base, a shaft journalled in said base, a roller at one end of said shaft, drive means at the other end of said shaft for rotating said shaft and said roller thereon, a member pivotally connected to said base, a roller rotatably carried at one end of said member, one of said rollers being formed with a peripheral groove and the other of said rollers being formed with a complementary peripheral rib, said rollers being adapted to be moved laterally relative to one another by pivotal movement of said member on said base to frictionally engage and to deform the can body wall adapted to be positioned therebetween, the axes of said rollers and shaft being substantially parallel when thus moved laterally, an, eccentric ring rotatable on said member and cooperatively engaged with said base upon rotation of said ring to effect such pivotal movement of said member to thus relatively move said rollers and to lock said rollers in such can body wall engaging and deforming position, said shaft when rotated effecting, through the frictional engagement of the roller thereon wtih the can body wall, a rotation of the can toperipherally deform the latter in a plane parallel to the can bottom wall.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS I an. 26, 

